A potential terrorist slips across the U.S. border under the cover of darkness. Unchallenged, he disappears into the night - or so he thinks. Unknown to this intruder, he’s been detected all along - from 20,000 feet. And now, as he rests behind a rock, he’s being watched by a 2-foot-wide unmanned aerial vehicle hovering quietly a few feet away. Moments later the suspect is captured by federal agents alerted to his location. Mission completed, the UAV lands nearby, where it is picked up and readied for the next assignment.

This scenario is envisioned by AVID LLC, a leading designer of unmanned aerial vehicles that is developing an innovative new, patent-pending UAV concept to fulfill two strategic homeland security missions with one platform.

The Virginia company is designing a 20-foot-long flying wing-shaped UAV - propelled by eight ducted fan engines - capable of high-endurance surveillance missions at cruise altitude. Once a target is detected from above, the UAV could release one of its engine pods in flight. This engine pod, now transformed into its own self-propelled, hover-capable vehicle, could track a target anywhere on the ground, over water, or even under bridges while the flying wing stays aloft to look for threats from the sky.

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